Sarah Sundin's Blog, page 375
August 18, 2014
Today in World War II History—August 18, 1944
Battle flag of the USS Rasher (US Navy)
70 Years Ago—Aug. 18, 1944: Submarine Rasher sinks Japanese aircraft carrier Taiyo off Luzon in the Philippines. In southern France, US Task Force Butler under Brig. Gen. Frederic Butler strikes northwest, taking advantage of weak German resistance to make a rapid drive.
August 17, 2014
Today in World War II History—August 17, 1944
Canadian troops in Falaise, Normandy, 17 August 1944
70 Years Ago—Aug. 17, 1944: Germans begin retreat from southern France and from Falaise pocket; Canadians take Falaise; US Third Army takes St. Malo, Chartres, and Orléans. Vichy French government flees for Germany; Pétain and his staff are interned by Hitler, while Laval’s government resigns.
August 16, 2014
Today in World War II History—August 16, 1944
Messerschmitt Me 163 Komet being shot down by a US P-47 Thunderbolt, January 1945 (US Army Air Force)
70 Years Ago—Aug. 16, 1944: US Eighth Air Force suffers first attack by Luftwaffe jet fighters (Me 163s), has first loss to a jet, and also destroys a German jet for first time. Organized Japanese resistance ends on Burma-India border.
August 15, 2014
Today in World War II History—August 15, 1944
C-47 Skytrains of the 81st Troop Carrier Squadron loaded with paratroopers on their way for the invasion of southern France, 15 Aug 15 1944. (US National Archives)
70 Years Ago—Aug. 15, 1944: Operation Dragoon: US Seventh Army, including French troops and British paratroopers, lands 60,000 troops in southern France between Cannes and Toulon with excellent results – called France’s other D-Day.
August 14, 2014
Today in World War II History—August 14, 1944
French civilians welcome US troops in Normandy, 14 August 1944. (US National Archives)
70 Years Ago—Aug. 14, 1944: Canadian and US troops form the Falaise pocket in France, partially surrounding Germans. The US War Production Board allows the production of some civilian goods to resume in preparation for the November elections.
August 13, 2014
Today in World War II History—August 13, 1944
Ponte Vecchio, July 2011 (Photo: Sarah Sundin)
70 Years Ago—Aug. 13, 1944: British & Indian troops cross into northern Florence via historic Ponte Vecchio, securing city with help of Italians. Jackie Gleason-Les Tremayne show premieres on NBC radio.
August 12, 2014
Today in World War II History—August 12, 1944
Lt. Joseph P. Kennedy Jr. (US Navy photo)
70 Years Ago—Aug. 12, 1944: Lt. Joseph P. Kennedy Jr. (brother of the future president) is killed in a top-secret Aphrodite mission from England, in which planes loaded with bombs are guided by remote control to the target after the pilots bail out. First PLUTO (Pipeline under the Ocean) becomes operational, taking fuel from Isle of Wight to Cherbourg. New songs in Top Ten: “I’ll Walk Alone,” “Is You Is or Is You Ain’t My Baby?”
August 11, 2014
Today in World War II History—August 11, 1944
Damage to rail cars at US Naval Magazine, Port Chicago from 17 July 1944 explosion (US Naval History and Heritage Command)
70 Years Ago—Aug. 11, 1944: In France, US Third Army crosses the Loire River. At Nantes, Germans scuttle ships as Allies approach. Fifty black sailors who survived the Port Chicago Explosion still refuse to load munitions and are charged with mutiny. [see Port Chicago: The Work Stoppage]
August 10, 2014
Today in World War II History—August 10, 1944
Men of Company B, 305th RCT, moving out from high ground on Guam. (US Army Center of Military History)
70 Years Ago—Aug. 10, 1944: US secures Guam, although one Japanese soldier won’t surrender until 1972.
August 9, 2014
Today in World War II History—August 9, 1944
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